I got some Aussie change after buying lunch today and was reintroduced to just how heavy the coins are here. Despite the brilliance of virtually unrippable, washable plastic notes, coins are still the size of England’s in the 80s. The 50c piece is so big I can’t fit more than 3 in my wallet at the same time. It’s a good job Seinfeld was set in America, not Australia, cos this could’ve been the last coin that broke Costanza’s back.

Then again, both the Kiwis and the Aussies have already done away with 1c and 2c coins, and the Kiwis have just started the process of withdrawing 5c coins from circulation – In England we still have 1p and 2p pieces and notes that get destroyed in the wash!